May 18, 2011

When life gives you unripe melon, make fruit salad.

"Fruit's a gamble; I know that goin' in." -Jerry Seinfeld
       So true. I am so frustrated every time I come home from the store and, despite all my slapping and tapping and acting like I know how to pick a ripe melon, I cut it open to find it is tough and tasteless. But, it's not like I'm going to return it, so I attempt to use it anyway. First, I give it to my son, James. Who knows? Maybe he will like it?
      He picks up a little piece with his now-mastered pincher grasp and cautiously places it in his mouth. He gums it for a second, looks up at me with a furrowed brow, and spits it out onto his shirt. He then avoids the rest of the melon pieces in front of him and concentrates on the more important foods, like cheese. I can't say I blame him.
     I then try to give it to my dog, Sadie. She wasn't born yesterday either. After she chews and spits out a couple of pieces, I sigh and decide that I must find a way to use the melon.
     So, I made a delicious fruit salad. The key is to mince the melon into small enough pieces that you will never scoop up a bite of only melon. I didn't measure any of the ingredients, but here is a rough estimate:

  • 1/2 mango, diced
  • 1/4 of an unripe melon, minced
  • 1 cup diced strawberries
  • 1 cup diced pineapple
  • 1 tbsp fresh mint, chopped
  • zest of 1 lime
For a twist, add finely minced chipotle or another smokey pepper to mango, pineapple, and melon. Enjoy.

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